Friday, 22 July 2011

Clinton in India for Economic, Security Talks

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrived in India late Monday for two days of talks aimed at strengthening political and economic relations with the South Asian country.

Clinton's visit is part of an ongoing U.S.-India strategic dialogue that began last year with talks in Washington.

The secretary of state will spend Tuesday in discussions with senior Indian officials. Despite the economic focus, the talks will also cover U.S. planned withdrawal from Afghanistan and India's strained relations with arch-rival Pakistan.

On Wednesday, Clinton will travel to the southeastern city of Chennai, where she is scheduled to deliver a speech on the importance of U.S.-Indian relations and meet representatives of U.S. companies.

Her trip comes less than a week after a series of blasts in India's financial hub Mumbai killed 19 people.

No one has claimed responsibility for the triple bombings that wounded more than 130 others.

The U.S.-India civil nuclear cooperation agreement finalized in 2008 will be a topic for discussion at the strategic dialogue session. Indian leaders are also expected to bring up American visa laws that affect Indian professionals in the United States.